It was around 10:00 PM that night in August and I had checked everyone and was getting ready to go to sleep. I made one last check on my pregnant queen before I turned the lights out. Oh no! She can't be going into labor now! Because this was an "A" to "B" breeding (queen with blood type B bred to male with blood type A), that meant I not only had to stay up birthing kittens, but then stay up an additional 16 hours to hand feed the litter after it was born. Oh well; a warm summer night it was so I settled in for the duration.

During the middle of the night around 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning was a lighting storm. I remember thinking how unusual that is for where I live and how anyone sleeping would not even have known it had occurred. The births were uneventful and I ended up with four white kittens (three females and one male), and a lavender silver patched mctabby female. The feeding went well and aside from the usual exhaustion the next day, everything was fine.

About three weeks after the kittens were born, I noticed one of the white females breathing very deeply. She was not mouth breathing, but her side sucked in badly when she breathed. I thought they might be sick but she was the only one doing this, so off we went to the vet for an evaluation. The vet didn't think the kitten was ill and an x-ray then revealed the problem. The vet said she could not find the kitten's liver on the x-ray. She thought the kitten had a pericardial diaphragmatic hernia. This diagnosis proved to be correct and the kitten continued to grow and thrive. Often, you would never even know a kitten had this, but because she showed symptoms, she had to have corrective surgery when she got older. I had already decided I would probably end up keeping one of the other white females since this one obviously could not be used in a breeding program. But, as they continued to develop, this little kitten kept getting nicer and nicer. She ended up being an odd-eyed white (one blue eye, one gold eye - my favorite!) with huge, gorgeous eyes. She had a thick, soft, wavy, non-moulting coat, a beautiful wide head, a short stop and great muzzle and huge low-set ears. She turned out to be pick of the litter. There was no way this kitten was going to a pet home; I was already in love with her. At the age of 16 weeks she underwent major surgery at UC Davis to pull everything out of her pericardium and repair the herniated diaphragm. She was also spayed at the same time. At the time, she was the best kitten I had ever bred in 9 years of breeding Devons. I was so disappointed that she could never compete in championship.

And so the dream begins with new goals. I decided that not only would I show this kitten in Premiership (the class for spayed or neutered cats) but that she should grand, get a Regional Win and hopefully become the Best Devon Rex in Premiership for that season. I named her Kayzia and ended up not keeping any of the sisters for breeding from that litter.

Kayzia and I attended her first cat show at the age of 4 months; just barely a month after her surgery. We went down to Turlock for a one day show in January. Although she was a little nervous, she was well received. She made several judge's finals even getting a 2nd Best Kitten placement in the specialty ring! I was stunned, thrilled and excited. She went on to compete as a kitten and when she turned 8 months, came out as an open in Premiership. Judges even used her in finals as an "open" and that generally doesn't happen unless they are excited about the quality of the cat. She became a Grand Premier in October and after that, we traveled all over with friends and their cats to shows together until the end of the season in April. The campaign had begun.

Once she "granded" she quickly climbed the ranks of the cats in the standings for a regional win. Each year the regions in CFA dole out awards at the end of the season to the Top 25 kittens, cats in Championship and cats in Premiership. For the most part, around 300 + cats per region compete in the Premiership class for the season.

We had a blast driving and flying to many shows in Southern California with friends and even took in a trip back east. Kayzia developed her own likes and dislikes as far as showing went and while she basically enjoyed showing; she decided she did not like the way some judges would handle her. For those, as soon as they would put her back in the ring cage, she would quickly turn and try to "get" them. A few times she even succeeded much to my embarrassment. She always loved being on the judging table however and would light up immediately. Judges often commented on the fact that she was purring! As the season progressed and judges saw her again and again, her favorites either laughed off the behavior, or figured out their own way to deal with it. She was such a diva and never cared about any other cats in the showhall at all. She knew she was a star and knew when all of the attention was focused on her. Along the way, she brought home many "Best Cat" rosettes and would be called up to finals with not only the top cats in our region; but many others who went on to be National Winners that year.

Kayzia achieved a Regional Win in the Northwest Region and finished as the 12th Best Cat in Premiership for the 2004-2005 show season. But the goal of achieving Best Devon Rex in Premiership came down to the very last show. Kayzia had formidable competition from another white female Devon in the midwest who at one point in time was only 25 points away from catching her. The last show of the season was a very emotional one and after each ring and each final, it became harder and harder not to cry. Everyone was wiping away the tears. It was all quickly coming to an end and after those six rings that day; it would all be over. Something happens when you spend so much time in this hobby with a very special cat. The bonds of closeness grow very deep and you can't imagine going out to a show and not bringing your special friend. Kayzia received one last "Best Cat" at her last show going over all of the top cats in our region. I was so proud her. And when the dust settled and all of the points from all of those last shows in each region were tallied, Kayzia was Best Devon Rex in Premiership 2004-2005. The dream had become a reality. It doesn't matter that Kayzia would never be a breeding cat. She was a special gift that I will be forever grateful for. I still think about that odd lightning storm in the middle of that summer night and how no one even knew it had happened. And now, all lightning storms remind me of Kayzia and what a remarkable cat she turned out to be. Follow your dreams! You never know where they will lead you.